Single-family
homebuilding permits, which serve as a yardstick to measure construction
activity, totaled 302 in April in Colorado Springs and El Paso County,
according to a report Wednesday by the Pikes Peak Regional Building Department.
That's a 58.1 percent increase over the same month last year.
April's
total also was the highest number of permits issued by Regional Building in any
month since an identical number of permits were issued in June 2006, records
show.
For the
first four months of this year, single-family permits totaled 927, a two-thirds
increase over the same period in 2012.
Historically
low mortgage rates, an improving economy and better job numbers all have been
credited with propelling a turnaround in homebuilding.
Nationwide,
30-year, fixed-rate mortgages averaged 3.40 percent last week, their lowest
point since January, according to mortgage giant Freddie Mac. Meanwhile, the
local unemployment rate of 8.3 percent in March was at a four-year low.
Homebuilding
is a closely watched sector of the local economy because it employs thousands,
including builders, subcontractors, suppliers and the like.
Also, local
governments such as Colorado Springs and El Paso County collect sales taxes on
the purchase of building materials, which pump millions of dollars into their
annual budgets to help fund public safety, parks and other services.
Meanwhile,
local foreclosure filings totaled 173 in April, a 41 percent year-over-year
drop, a report from the El Paso County Public Trustee's Office showed. Year to
date, foreclosure filings totaled 722 through April, down 62.4 percent from the
same period last year.
The same low
mortgage rates are helping property owners avoid foreclosure by making it
easier for them to sell or refinance their homes, housing industry members have
said.
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